The city of Easton and The Da Vinci Science Center in Pennsylvania are considering potential sitesfor a newaquarium.One of these is Chattanooga. But downtown Chattanooga already hasthe TennesseeAquarium reports WFMZ-TV.
The Tennessee Aquarium comprisestwo separate buildings.The River Journey takesvisitors on the journey of a raindrop, right fromfrom the Appalachian forest down to the Gulf of Mexico. It opened in 1992.
The other is Ocean Journey which opened in 2005. This isa 60, 000 square foot structure equivalent in height to a ten-story building. Itincludes penguins, sharks and a butterfly area.
The Aquarium, which has been accredited by theAssociation of Zoos and Aquariums(AZA) since 1993, houses over12, 000 animals and800 species.
Tennessee Aquarium
Cindy Todd, chief marketing and branding officer at the Tennessee Aquariumsaid, "We were built with all private money.The state invested in the plaza around the aquarium about $10 million, and then $45 million was what it cost 25 years ago."
in Gatlinburg and Atlanta, Georgia this reducedthe Tennessee Aquarium's visitor base by 25%. Current attendance is around750, 000.
"Aquariums are very, very expensive to operate, ” she says. “You do have to plan to have changing exhibits to keep the experience fresh and new."
Todd cautionsthatEaston, looking to move into the aquarium business, should go in"eyes wide open". In hard economic timeslocals will be the sustaining forceastourists are less likely to travel.
"I definitely envied my peers at the Georgia Aquarium. When the recession hit they had 8 million people to draw from, ” Todd said. “Where we had our population on about 400, 000."
So what would make thepartnership between the community, Eastonand The Da Vinci Center work? Can the$130 million project become aprofitable venture?
"You just need to be special and different and give people a reason to get off the couch and come visit you, " says Todd.
The city of Easton will pay $30 million toward the project, which will purchasethe land and contribute towardsexhibits.
David Rosenberg, Vice President of Guest Experience
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